ISMAR is an orphan girl in a matriarchal society, where queens rule, female Captains lead private armies and wealthy women build harems of men who dedicate themselves to homemaking.
Priestesses of a healing deity raise her, but at seventeen she forsakes their peaceful ideals to join the mercenaries of the Deadhead Company. They reject her, so she must survive on the streets.
During her struggles, she becomes friends with a shy boy, KOZIMA, and falls in love with a set-piece male actor, PARNERES. She clashes with Parneres's mistress, PELETH, a member of an assassin cult, in Palmyr to assassinate the Queen.
Peleth attacks Ismar. Ismar believes she killed Peleth, but is herself wounded. She trades evidence against Peleth for Deadhead's help, but both Peleth's body and Parneres disappear. Ismar is accused of conspiracy.
Kozima finds evidence to acquit Ismar, but brings up a charge of seduction against her. Instead of walking free, Ismar marries to save the 'ruined' man. The impressed CAPTAIN accepts Ismar into the Deadheads.
Ismar embarks on a hopeless march against a far-away city, ruled by a despotic sorceress. It seems an attempt by Peleth to lure her into a trap, but with the help of a local ally, ONDREY, Ismar wins. The defeated sorceress curses Ismar. To survive, she must perform fertility rites with Ondrey.
To compensate for marrying Ondrey, Ismar promises Kozima to forget Parneres, even though she meets an ugly stranger, TAFFIZ, one of Peleth's cohorts, signaling that she will clash with Peleth over Parneres.
Ismar subdues a rebellion that Peleth instigates in her homeland. Taffiz changes sides, helping Ismar to defeat Peleth and rescue Parneres, who is emotionally destroyed by abuse. Ismar's relationship with Parneres crumbles when their daughter is born sickly.
Over the next decade, Ismar's career stalls. An upstart princess, the TIGRESS, eventually forces her out of a lucrative Imperial contract. She hands in her resignation letter to the Captain.
Taffiz reports that the Captain is dead, letter destroyed, making Ismar suspicious. Unable to accuse him without condemning herself, Ismar sends him, a man, to the Captain's elections, hoping that he is executed for this insult to the gathering.
Meanwhile, Ismar accepts a contract against the Tigress, offered by Duke NIRAV. As a man he cannot inherit, serving as his sister's regent. They have an affair until Nirav plans to marry VANOZZA. Ismar manipulates Vanozza into becoming bait for the Tigress. Following triumph, Ismar can have Nirav and the duchess' crown, but she refuses, supporting him as regent.
During a holy ritual to save Ismar's daughter, Parneres, not Ismar has spiritual strength to perform the healing.
Taffiz succeeds: Ismar is elected the Captain. She finally recognizes beauty in him and proposes.
In the end, Ismar is a matriarch intent on changing the world so that everyone, no matter their gender, could follow their heart. For until this is so, there will never be true peace.
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Hearts in Zenith (Four Husbands and a Lover)
Fantasy||Reverse Harem Upbeat Adventure|| For content review purposes, please note that Ismar is 18 yo when the story starts and ages up from there. Powerful matriarchal clan, strong daughters and military glory are solid life goals. But whenever Ismar's m...
